Hey!!! I guess you have finalized UCI and decided for the best possible place to kickstart your Master’s journey. The initial weeks are the most crucial to adapting to a new country or atmosphere. As a Graduate student you would be having already a lot on your plate, the dreams, the ambitions and the plans to put those dreams into action. The first part of executing this plan begins with setting up yourself and your residence and also getting familiar with the new place you have just arrived in. In this entire process, the finances are the highlight. It is really important to know how much money is enough money to get your work done. Plus, it will be a new experience to deal with a new currency altogether.
In my case, I opted for an off-campus accommodation at Parkwest Apartments. The first two weeks totally dealt with me spending a lot of dollars to set up the basic amenities like electricity connection, Wi-Fi connection, house insurance, utilities, getting a bus pass etc. For the things mentioned before, keep around 500$ handy. Since, my home didn’t come with furnishing, I had to spend around 200$to buy a mattress, a study table and chair for myself. It is equally important to set up some stock for food and I would suggest going with 100 to 200$ for the initial groceries purchase.
Apart from this, you would have to open a bank account and they would ask for a minimum deposit depending on which bank you are opting for. I suggest keeping around 300$ for that. Also, you may be required to pay for the first month’s rent like I had to. It would come up to be between 500$ to 600$ if you are opting for off-campus housing with roommates.
Finally, one more expense would be using Uber/Lyft to commute within Irvine and Orange County until you get comfortable with the bus routes. I would suggest keeping aside around 200$ for that. On the whole, it would be a comfortable transition if you could have somewhere between 2000$ to 2500$ when you arrive in USA. This is just a rough estimate on what all places you would require spending cash and managing your accounts, the actual amount could be higher or lower depending on how you spend.
Happy Budgeting!!
Gautam RaviHome Country: IndiaThe Henry Samueli School of Engineering
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